The Costeau Foundation chooses l'Estartit to locate its global scientific headquarters

The Costeau Foundation has chosen L’Estartit to build its world scientific headquarters, which will be located on the grounds where the Games are now held. This project comes to light thanks to the agreement between the non-profit organization, the Mascort Foundation , owner of the space, and the Torroella de Montgrí City Council.

The facility will begin construction soon and is expected to be inaugurated in two years. It will have a surface area of ​​around 6,000 m² that will be used to carry out various studies and activities. This facility will serve to promote the reintroduction of endangered marine animal and plant species and to eradicate invasive species such as Caulerpa , an invasive algae that has caused the almost total disappearance of Posidonia in Catalonia.

A building with scientific and recreational facilities

The Costeau Foundation building will feature modern and functional architecture. It will have two amoeba-shaped areas with water tanks of between 1,700 and 31,000 liters surrounded by moats of between 3 and 4 meters deep. They will be used for the reproduction of species. Quarantine tanks, a cultivation space and nearly two hundred aquariums will also be built. The global scientific headquarters ‘Union of the Oceans’ will work in a water control laboratory to analyze the contaminating elements of the sea and another for marine biology . The facility will be completed by a multipurpose auditorium for exhibitions and conferences, a documentary center and a themed restaurant.

Activities of the Costeau Foundation in Torroella de Montgrí and l’Estartit

Beyond the construction of the Costeau Foundation’s world scientific headquarters, Torroella de Montgrí and l’Estartit will host several projects of the entity, such as the organization of the International Mediterranean Fisheries Congress, marine biology programs in educational centers and activities that are developed in collaboration with other entities such as the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Barcelona or the School of Cinema and Audiovisuals. It will also serve to promote the Institut d’Estudis de la Mar – Philippe Cousteau, which will teach professional merchant marine courses, previously unpublished in the province of Girona. With a presence in 34 countries around the world, the foundation has decided to build a new global scientific space with the aim of unifying criteria.

A privileged environment to locate the equipment

The Costeu Foundation values ​​the generosity of the Mascort Foundation and the work of the City Council as keys to locating in L’Estartit and also the fact that the municipality enjoys a privileged environment and is one of the world capitals of diving. Both Ramon Mascort and the City Council will join the board of trustees of the Costeau Foundation. From the Torroella de Montgrí City Council, the mayor, J ordi Colomí, is “very satisfied, excited, grateful” and at the same time “fortunate” that in Torroella de Montgrí-l’Estartit a project of global impact is being “consolidated” that represents “a before and after for the municipality and the country”. For the mayor, this project “will strengthen territorial policies, which must be permanent over time, will affect the improvement of the deseasonalization of the tourist season because it will generate visits all year round, will lend a hand to our tourist and social sector and will have a positive impact on the social aspect by generating more jobs”. For his part, Marc Calvet , first deputy mayor, argues that “the choice by the Philippe Cousteau foundation of l’Estartit as a world scientific headquarters is magnificent news, it is an impetus and recognition of a commitment that we have made as a municipality for many years, to make economic dynamism compatible with environmental preservation”.